Last night I caught a performance of You Won’t Be Here (Tomorrow) at the White House Studio Project presented by Theatre In Spite Of.  Let me just say immediately that this was one of the best pieces of theatre I have ever seen.

You Won’t Be Here (Tomorrow) tells the story of two sisters, Julie and Simone, both dealing with huge personal struggle.  As they try their best to be there for each other, all the years of pent up anger and resentment towards each other is released before they finally reconcile.  I don’t want to give away too many details on this one because I think the whole world should come and see it for themselves.

As you walk up the stairs to the theatre space, you enter the set of a really dirty and dumpy apartment.  A body lies sleeping on a mattress on the floor with all her personal possessions thrown all over the couch.  Finally, Simone breaks into the apartment to find her sister Julie and everything begins to unfold.

To be perfectly honest, I can’t find one negative thing to say about what I saw.  The acting was completely mind-blowing that I barely noticed other aspects of the show.  Julie Lemieux in the role of Julie was hilarious and heartbreaking all at once and Karen Ivany in the role of Simone was so funny and believable but it was her moment at the end of the play that had me holding back serious tears.

The set was disgusting and the lighting was completely harsh and I loved it.  Everything worked together so well and created this environment of despair that was both pathetic and comical.

This play is a total must-see.  It’s definitely dark and heavy, but so completely worth it.

Details

• You Won’t Be Here (Tomorrow) plays at the White House Studio Project (277 Augusta)
• Show times:
  July 04 08:00 PM
  July 05 08:00 PM
  July 06 08:00 PM
  July 08 08:00 PM
  July 10 08:00 PM
  July 11 08:00 PM
  July 12 08:00 PM
  July 13 08:00 PM
  July 14 08:00 PM
• All individual Fringe tickets are $10 at the door (cash only). Tickets are available online at www.fringetoronto.com, by phone at 416-966-1062, in person at the Fringe Club, 581 Bloor St. W, July 3rd-14th, noon – 10pm (Advance tickets are $11 – $9+$2 service charge)
• Value packs are available if you plan to see at least 5 shows.